Star Wars: Boba Fett — Black, White & Red #4
TARGET: ERIADU
The perfect clone of a legendary bounty hunter.
A ruthless hunter with no allegiance to anyone but himself.
Just a simple man making his way through the galaxy….
Writer: Alyssa Wong
Artist: Sara Pichelli
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colourist: Rachelle Rosenberg
Cover artist: Ken Lashley
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publication date: December 31 2025
‘Today’s client could be tomorrows target’
That single line from Boba Fett Black, White and Red #4 encapsulates the life of a bounty hunter better than an entire dissertation could hope to, and under the pen of the always entertaining Alyssa Wong we get yet another engrossing Fett flashback feature as we see him not only engage the underworld but high Imperial society, in this case the Tarkin family of Eriadu. Of course, as with all good stories, there’s a twist, and as we open at the Royal Imperial Academy and meet Synda Tarkin, niece of the Grand Moff and an up-and-coming officer at the academy. However, our time with her is brief, as soon after meeting her she retires to continue her studies, but is murdered in her quarters by a masked assassin. Contacting Governor Tarkin, we quickly see his ambivalence, with no intention of either grieving his niece or doing anything about it, his duty to the Empire taking precedence.
We cut to Eriadu, a world of wealth and poverty, the underworld festering under the shining spires of the aristocracy, and the Tarkin Estate where Synda’s mother is meeting with Boba Fett, hiring him to bring in her daughter’s killer for 20,000 credits, and alive for a further 20,000. She gives him a datacard with information; the crime scene on Eriadu, her schedule, associates, and makes it clear that she doesn’t want the killer to suffer Imperial justice, but Tarkin justice.
Fett enters the city, the people whispering about the murder, and as he weighs up the options he stops a hungry pick pocket, who he feeds and gets information, learning more about the political situation on Eriadu and how the ruling houses are opposed to each other. More than that, he knows who killed Synda – the Shadow of Bri-Phrang. As the words are spoken, they’re attacked, laser fire raining down, Fett hit but his beskar taking the damage. He tells the kid to run and spots a sniper up high, quickly entering into a scuffle assuming it was the Shadow of Bri-Phrang, but it’s not. The attacker is Raslin Grace, a member of a rival Eriadu family who is also after the Shadow. Fett is confused, asking why she attacked him if she knows he isn’t the Shadow, and she tells him she knows exactly who he is, and his reputation. He stands down, but tells her he works alone, and she distracts him to make her departure.
Fett heads back to the underworld, asking around about the Shadow, and as he wins hands of cards to angry pirates and cleans house, taking one to extract more information, we learn the Shadow is considered a hero to the people of Eriadu, and as Fett grudgingly gives the people some respect, wondering why a world with blood in its culture don’t fight back more. Suddenly he is attacked again by Raslin Grace, and a fierce scrap begins, with Grace now less interested in bringing in the Shadow than taking down Fett. She is rich, bored, uninterested in the bounty and more in the glory of taking Fett out and mounting his helmet – and his head – on her wall. She continues to goad him, both taking lumps out of each other, telling Fett she would have gone after a Tarkin herself if the Shadow hadn’t, and as she gets Fett in a chokehold the Shadow leaps in, knocking her off and telling Raslin they’re now after her, and they fight as Fett steps back and opens fire on them both, until Raslin manages to run a knife through the Shadows shoulder. As Raslin gloats at Fett, telling him he’ll need to get to the Shadow before they bleed out, he activates his backpack, flying high over Raslin and grabbing the injured Shadow, throwing down a thermal detonator at Raslin and landing on a rooftop, tending to the Shadows wound with a bacta spray before delivering them to the Tarkin Estate, and as their mask is removed, revealing a scarred womans face, she tells Tarkin that it is possible for the people of Eriadu to strike back.
Fett walks away, and as he does a rain of fire hits around him, and he looks up to see Raslin Grace, telling Fett she’ll see him around as he boards Slave 1 and the end of the issue and the four-part series. No surprise that Alyssa Wong delivered an great tale, but the artwork from Sara Pichelli really hits the spot, so impactful in black, white and red (with a smattering of grays), and once again for 2025 Marvel end a mini or limited series with a great final issue and leave us wanting more. For the Boba BWR series, we’ve been treated to four full-length adventures, rather than the three mini stories the Vader series did, and as Marvels output seems to be slowing in 2026 (the Solicitations looking rather sparse of late) we can but hope there are more of this particular series ahead, with perhaps future series for Kylo Ren, the Emperor, and more.
